Title

Author

Date of Award

Document Type

Degree Name

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

Department

Graduate Department of Clinical Psychology

First Advisor

Mary Peterson, Ph.D.

Second Advisor

Kathleen Gathercoal, Ph.D.

Third Advisor

Glena Andrews, Ph.D.

Abstract

Effective legislative advocacy for the delivery of psychology services impacts both the practicing psychologist as well as the public served by the profession. In the field of psychology, advocacy contributes to the scope of practice, funding, and reimbursement for psychologists as well as access and quality of care for those needing services (Lating, Barnett, & Horowitz, 2010). Despite the significant impact on their future professional life, advocacy is not a routine part of graduate education and training. The purpose of this study was to explore graduate students’ knowledge, skills and attitudes toward legislative advocacy. The findings of this study suggest there is a significant difference in the level of training between graduate students who engage in advocacy and those who do not. Overall, the active students reported their personal values influenced both their attitude and engagement in advocacy.